Vacuum pack cooking, conserving flavour

It’s time to forget everything you’ve ever heard about sous-vide cooking and to remember that it was a Michelin-starred chef who was the fi rst to use the method.

In 1974, Pierre Troisgros, chef of the restaurant that bears his name in Roanne (France) complained of losing 40% of his foie gras during the cooking process. George Pralus, well known as an inventive chef, came to the rescue and managed to reduce the loss to 5% without taking away any flavour, by cooking it in a plastic bag.

At the same time, Bruno Goussault (founder and scientifi c director of CREA – Food Research and Study Centre), another pioneer of this method, highlighted the effects of temperature, water and vacuum cooking on food. ‘Water is the best coolant and is the easiest to regulate with precision. At the same time, to avoid oxidation and conserve fl avour during the cooking process, the product must be protected by an airtight plastic pocket.’

Initially reticent, top chefs soon took on board the advantages of this cooking method which, when used in combination with low temperatures for a prolonged period, conserves the original aspect, freshness, vitamins and taste of the food. Paul Bocuse, Joël Robuchon and Ferran Adrià, the well-known chef of “El Bulli” in Spain, have all embraced this method.

Chris Waley, chef of the Picco in California, can’t imagine using any other method for his rhubarb and vanilla syrup dessert. Christophe Larrat, executive chef at the Alain Ducasse training centre, explains this return to favour by the fact that it is one of the best methods to bring out the full flavour of food. For example, it is used in producing a perfectly rosy pink salmon on the bone, cooked asparagus that is as green as the raw vegetable and even a beef joint cooked all the way through – enough said!